How our Befriending Service has helped Jane and Phil

Let us introduce Jane and Phil; due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Phil suddenly found himself stuck in his flat shielding with limited social contact with anyone at all. Phil said, "I had been in my flat since the first lockdown without much contact with anyone at all...all my life I've been outdoors, and now I can't even go out for a walk. Then I was referred to Age UK South Gloucestershire's befriending service, and everything changed, I met Jane".

On meeting Phil, our Volunteering Coordinator felt he and Jane would get along famously. They were matched in October 2020 but unfortunately had just one face-to-face meeting before the second national lockdown. They did, however, get along so well at their first meeting that they decided that instead of contacting each other via phone, they would have video calls. 'It adds so much more to the conversation if you can see each other's facial expression...we chat for around 2 hours a week!" said Phil.

"I wouldn't have ever met or spoken to Phil before becoming a volunteer with Age UK South Gloucestershire. It's been so great to get a different perspective through speaking with him," said Jane. They have so much to talk about and really enjoy their varied chats, "Talking with Jane throws a different light on many different subjects. In the short time we've known each other, Jane could have been a friend I've known for ten years or more. I look forward to our weekly chat; in such a short term friendship like it is with us, I've really grown to trust Jane", said Phil.

Jane also found the pandemic affected her, and she wasn't seeing as many people as usual either, "I work from home, since the pandemic I don't usually see or speak with many people each week. I really look forward to switching off from work and chatting with Phil; I'd definitely recommend it!"

Phil is so please he's met Jane now, "At first, the lockdown didn't affect me, but over time I felt the walls coming in and getting closer and closer, in one hour of chatting, you can shred all the weight off your shoulders, it's like you get that burst of get up and go again until the following week comes around". Jane agreed and said, "We were so well matched, when you're alone, you can get tangled in your thoughts, almost like tunnel vision as you don't have anyone to bounce your ideas off, even if you have 10 minutes chatting to someone, it's good to have that release sometimes".

Phil is now looking forward to the future. Meeting Jane has given him a fantastic new friend; the experience has also given him the confidence to get back out into the community again as things start to open up. "Jane is such a friendly, open person; we've said once we can, we will go for coffee together and meet up when we can. This experience has made me realise I'm not on my own as much as I thought I was within the community; there are people out there who are willing to give in whichever way they can," said Phil.

Phil was keen to ensure people know how valuable the Befriending Service has been to him and said, "Don't sit on your own; we're all still young at heart, speak out and say you need someone to talk to; it will improve your life 100%".

Would you like to volunteer with us? To find out more, click below and see if you can find your perfect volunteering position today.

https://www.ageuk.org.uk/southgloucestershire/get-involved/volunteer/